MUMBAI, July 15 -- Seventeen years after a Jalna businessman and three others were killed when their car was struck by a train at an unmanned railway crossing, the Bombay High Court has held the South Central Railway primarily responsible and ordered it to pay Rs.3.8 crore in compensation to the victim's family. The division bench of Justices Kishore C Sant and Ajit B Khadethankar ruled that the Railways were 75% liable for the March 22, 2009 accident at Level Crossing No. 59 on the Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar-Karmad route. The remaining 25% liability was placed on the car driver for contributory negligence. Businessman Anil Jindal, his driver and two others were killed when their car was hit by a passenger train travelling from Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar to Hyderabad. The court found that although the crossing was officially classified as a manned gate, the Railways failed to appoint a replacement after the gateman retired in 1991-92, leaving it unattended for years. "As such, the LC-59 remained unguarded and unmanned. Resultantly, the passers became extremely vulnerable to railway accidents," the bench said and upheld the Tribunal ruling, observing that it was "sheer negligence" on part of the railways to leave the gate unmanned and unguarded. The judges also noted that railway rules permit an unmanned crossing to be upgraded to a manned one, but not the reverse. The court, however, rejected the family's argument that the occupants could not see or hear the approaching train because of trees. It noted that the train was travelling at 95 kmph and held that the driver also bore responsibility for attempting to cross the tracks.The family had initially sought Rs.6.25 crore before the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal. While the tribunal awarded Rs.3.63 crore in 2023 by fixing 60% liability on the Railways, the high court increased the Railways' share to 75% and directed it to pay Rs.3.8 crore with 7.5% annual interest from 2009.htc...